Blue Dragon The New Darkness
by Archdemon Slayer
Summary: season 3 of blue dragon. rated T for blood, violence, mild language, and Marumaro acting like a pervert. Mysterious events occur and Shu and the others must stop it, lead by a female Shadow Wielder named Rin. I do not own Blue Dragon. This story, however, is one I came up with, as well as the character, Rin. Please review! COMPLETE AT LAST!
1. Chapter 1

Nearby explosions caused rocks in the canyon to crumble as two Shadow Wielders, Delphinium and Jiro were battling.

"You seem to have gotten better than last time," said Delphinium as she dodged Minotaur's Conquer attack, "but I will still win!"

"Still win! Still win!" said Deathroy.

"Shut up!" Jiro shouted. "Now let's show them what we're made of!"

"You got it, Jiro!" Minotaur replied as he threw punches at Chimera. Chimera protected himself with his wings before charging an attack.

"Watch out, Minotaur!" Jiro warned.

"Too slow!" Delphinium shouted as Chimera released a beam of dark energy at Minotaur. Minotaur and Jiro were sent flying into the canyon wall. They barely dodged a punch from Chimera.

"Get your head in the game, Jiro!" Minotaur said. "Every time we fight her I get the worst end of the battle!"

"Just shut up and fight!" Jiro retorted. Minotaur simply rolled his eyes.

"Get serious!" Delphinium demanded. "This is getting too easy!"

"Too easy! Too easy!" said Deathroy.

"Waves of Rage!" Jiro shouted as Minotaur let loose a series of punches at Chimera. Chimera was only able to hold off the first few punches, but the rest made contact with him. Both Chimera and Delphinium were sent flying backwards, with Chimera vanishing when they landed. Minotaur vanished as Jiro rushed to Delphinium, sword drawn, to deal the final blow.

_Gotcha! _Delphinium thought with a smirk. Her artificial Shadow, Hydra, was summoned. The head in the middle took the blow from the sword while the other two heads shot out a beam of energy at Jiro. The smoke from the blast filled the canyon. When it cleared, Hydra vanished and Delphinium got up, brushing herself off. Deathroy mimicked her movements. Delphinium was covered in scratches. The most serious injury she had was a bleeding wound on her leg. She winced as pain shot up her leg when she put weight on it. After looking around, she saw Jiro about fifty yards away, in a sitting position with his back against the canyon wall. Delphinium limped over to him. Jiro was unconscious, his head resting on his shoulder. A trickle of blood ran from one corner of his mouth and dripped on the ground. Jiro's clothes were ripped apart, the remainder of his white shirt now colored scarlet. His chest was covered in blood from where the blast had hit him. His dark green tunic had fallen off and was now soaking up the puddle of red forming around Jiro. Delphinium bend down and put two fingers on the side of Jiro's neck, feeling for a pulse. She smiled and got up. Delphinium started to limp out of the canyon, leaving Jiro behind.


	2. Chapter 2

"Jiro's what?" Shu shouted. Shu, Bouquet, Marumaro, Kluke, and Andropov were visiting Sui to get information on Rosekstan's current activity.

"How could Jiro be missing, maro?" Marumaro asked Sui.

"Tell us what happened," Kluke said. Sui nodded.

"About three days ago, one of our informants sighted Delphinium and Deathroy in a nearby canyon. This caught Jiro's attention, of course," Sui explained.

"So Jiro went after her I take it?" Bouquet guessed.

"That's right," Sui replied. "I couldn't stop him from chasing after her, since you know how stubborn and reckless he can be at times, so I told him to be extra careful. He hasn't come back yet and I'm worried that the worst happened to him."

"We gotta go after him, then!" said Shu. "He could be in trouble!"

"I already sent out a search party in the canyon two days ago," said Sui. "They came back yesterday evening with no success. They had seen the signs of a large battle there."

"So Jiro found Delphinium then?" asked Andropov.

"More than likely," Sui replied. Suddenly, her face became grim. "They also saw a lot of blood. It's unknown if it's Delphinium's or Jiro's."

"What about a trail of blood, maro?" Marumaro asked. "If they didn't see anyone there that means that person must've gotten away."

"Actually," said Sui, "They found a short trail of blood, but the trail had suddenly stopped, as if the person vanished. As for the other, we don't know anything. There was a large pool of blood, but the trail didn't come from that."

"They could've gotten on their Shadows to get away," Kluke pointed out.

"Well, it's possible for the person who left the trail, but for the other, it's highly unlikely that they would even be conscience with the amount of blood loss, much less have the energy to summon a Shadow," Sui said. Shu got up

"We still need to find Jiro!" he insisted.

"I agree," Sui said. "I've already sent out informants to gather information on Jiro's whereabouts."

"Let's get searching, then!" Shu exclaimed.

"Right!" the others replied as they headed out to search.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey all you readers! I forgot to summarize what had happened in between the end of season 2 and the beginning of this story. It has been six months post-tenkai. The White Guardians are no longer hunting Shadow Wielders and have now basically became a new Jibral Kingdom. Rosekstan still exists, though. Jiro still stays with Sui and fights with Delphinium. Kluke and Andropov are staying with Shu and the others now, because of their house being destroyed. Now back to the story!

Jiro's vision was filled with nothing but blackness. His chest burned with pain, making his head spin. His legs felt heavy and it took a lot of effort to keep from collapsing.

"Go back, Jiro…" a voice echoed in Jiro's mind.

"Is that you, Jina?"asked Jiro. He felt the presence of someone standing next to him, but yet he couldn't see anything.

"Go back, Jiro…" Jina said again. "It's not your time yet, brother."

"Jina! Don't leave me!" Jiro cried out as Jina's presence began to fade. "Don't go!" Something wet and cold splashed in Jiro's face and his eyes flew open. He was lying in a now wet bed. His chest and arms were covered in bandages, which were now soaking up the water. Next to him was a teenage girl who looked a couple years older than he was. She had long black hair that went down to her waist. She wore a bright red spaghetti strap shirt, which cut off at her stomach. A sky blue gem was in the center of the shirt. She also wore black shorts with a blue belt and white boots. On one wrist was a golden bangle and on the other was a bracelet with ocean-blue gems. In her hands was a pot with water dripping from the rim. Her violet eyes shone with amusement and a large grin stretched across her face.

"Finally awake now, I see," she laughed. Jiro just stared at the bucket, now empty of water before blowing his top.

"DID YOU JUST DUMP WATER ON MY FACE?!" he yelled. A tiny giggle was heard from her.

"Well, you were screaming your head off, so I figured this would be the appropriate wake-up call," she smirked. "I also wouldn't be yelling at the person that just saved your ass if I were you."

"Huh?" was all Jiro said. The girl sighed.

"Look," she said, "I heard a lot of commotion in the canyon, so I went out to investigate. I found you unconscious and half-dead. You were bleeding an awful lot."

"Um," Jiro said, "where are my clothes?"

"History," the girl said matter-of-factly. "I went out and bought you the same clothes that you used to have." She exited the room and came back a moment later with a stack of neatly folded clothes. She dumped them on Jiro, him wincing when they hit his chest. "And I've also got your sword." She placed Jiro's sword, already put back in its sheath, on the table. "My name's Rin, by the way," she added. "What's yours?"

"Ugh, I'm Jiro" Jiro replied as he tried to get up. He suddenly gripped his chest, pain shooting through his body.

"Don't move too much or you'll open your wounds up," Rin warned. Jiro just grunted as he lay down again. "Now tell me how you got used as someone else's punching bag." Jiro told her about the fight in the canyon. When he mentioned Delphinium, Rin's eyes suddenly burned with hatred. They stayed that way even when Jiro finished.

"What's wrong?" Jiro asked. Rin just muttered something to herself, too quietly for Jiro to make out the words.

"Describe Delphinium," Rin said suddenly.

"Well," Jiro began, suddenly curious as to what set her off, "She has long, lavender hair and blue eyes. She appears to be in her late twenties and she wears a perfume smelling of flowers."

"That's definitely the one," Rin muttered.

"Wait!" Jiro exclaimed. "You've met her before?" Rin nodded, her eyes suddenly filled with sorrow.

"She murdered my family. I witnessed her do it." Rin said, gritting her teeth to keep the tears from falling. "I'm all alone now because of that witch!"

"My family is dead, too," Jiro said. "They died during a Grankingdom attack on my village. I was the only survivor. But why did Delphinium kill your family?"

"When Grankingdom appeared in our village, we resisted, so my village was bombed," Rin explained. "Delphinium was sent out to capture me and only me."

"Why only you?" Jiro asked.

"Because…" Rin started before taking a deep breath. "Because I'm a Shadow Wielder."

**Well, that's chapter 3. What do you think of the story so far? Make sure to review it! Many, many more chapters to go!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Any sign of him, Blue Dragon?" Shu asked as he and Blue Dragon flew over the canyon.

"Shut up, kid!" Blue Dragon snapped. "I already said that I'd tell you if I see him!"

"Damn, you don't need to get hostile. I was only asking a simple question," Shu said. "No reason to snap at me like that."

"I'll snap at you whenever I please!" Blue Dragon retorted.

"Let's just find Jiro, already!" Shu said, throwing a hostile glare at Blue Dragon. Blue Dragon simply huffed.

"The sooner we get this done, the better," Blue Dragon said.

"Agreed!" replied Shu as they flew onwards.

"See him yet, Andropov?" Bouquet asked.

"Not yet," Andropov responded, "I'm still searching." Albiheim sent out more search crystals.

"Don't worry, Bouquet!" Hippo said. "We'll find Jiro for sure!"

"Hey!" Bouquet suddenly exclaimed. "Let's transform into a bird and search in the air!"

"Great idea!" Hippo agreed.

"Now! Hippopon, Hippotama Transform!" Bouquet called out as she and Hippo transformed into a pink bird before flying away to search.

"Keep running, maro! Keep running, maro!" Marumaro cried out as he and Saber-Tiger ran through the forest.

"I'm running the best I can in this forest!" Saber-Tiger replied.

"Not good enough!" said Marumaro. "We need to find Jiro quickly, maro!" Saber-Tiger suddenly skidded to a halt.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, maro?!" Marumaro demanded, shaking a fist in the air.

"We've been running for hours!" Saber-Tiger retorted. "I've hit my limit! I need a break!"

"I've never known you to be a whiner, maro!" Marumaro taunted.

"Look," Saber-Tiger said, "I want to find Jiro as much as you do, but I can't run anymore. I need to take a break."

"Hmph, fine!" Marumaro huffed impatiently. "But make it quick!"

"See him yet, Phoenix?" Kluke asked. She and Phoenix were scouting the plains for Jiro.

"Not yet, Kluke, I'm sorry," Phoenix, responded.

"It's alright," Kluke told her, "I'm sure we'll find Jiro eventually."

Night fell and the five Shadow Wielders returned to Sui's house, unsuccessful and crestfallen. But when they entered the house, Sui had a large grin on her face.

"One of our informants just reported to have gotten Jiro's location!" she said.

"Let's go then!" Shu exclaimed. Suddenly his stomach let out a large growl that made everyone else laugh.

"Let's eat, first and find Jiro tomorrow," Sui said, still giggling. The others agreed.

Hang on, Jiro! Shu thought. We're coming!


	5. Chapter 5

"You're a Shadow Wielder? !" Jiro exclaimed.

"Yes I am," Rin replied. "That's why they attacked us."

"But how did they know you were one?" Jiro asked.

"Because two days before the attack, I accidentally released my Shadow for the first time," Rin replied. "My brother was hurt badly after falling down from a tree and slicing his leg open on a rock. She healed him and disappeared and I didn't see her again for awhile."

"This caught Grankingdom's attention, I take it?" Jiro guessed.

"Right," Rin said, "they came two days later to capture me for their own purposes. I was gathering herbs for Mother when they came. I ran back home to look for my family. The village was already being bombed and it took awhile to reach home. I heard voices and hid in a nearby bush. I peeked out and saw Delphinium demanding that I be handed over. My parents and little brother all refused." Rin's voice cracked. "She summoned her Shadow and killed them." Tears flooded Rin's eyes. "I ran away, vowing to kill Delphinium one day. I then set out to try to summon my Shadow. It took about a month to be able to do it."

"I see. . ." Jiro said. " I'm a Shadow Wielder as well." A blue aura enveloped Jiro as Minotaur appeared. Minotaur looked around, confused.

"Hey, Jiro!" Minotaur said. "Where's the enemy?" Minotaur caught sight of Jiro. "What the hell happened to you? ! And who is she?" Minotaur pointed at Rin.

"She saved me," Jiro muttered. "Her name is Rin."

"So the big, bad swordsman needs to be saved again," Minotaur taunted.

"Shut up!" Jiro retorted. Minotaur chuckled and vanished.

"So that was your Shadow, huh?" Rin said. A blue aura surrounded her and a Shadow appeared.

"Hey, Rin," the Shadow said, "I thought we saved this guy! Are we gonna fight him as well?"

"No, Worgen," Rin said with a sigh, "I'm just showing him you." Worgen was a wolf-like creature with short white fur and long gray fur covering the top of her head. She wore an elegant dark blue dress with golden embroidery. A black overtop was worn over the dress. She had a mage's staff on her back. The staff ended in a silver curved dragon's head with a red orb in its mouth. Like most Shadows, she had red eyes.

"Well, here I am," Worgen said. "Now next time you summon me, make sure it's not for show-and-tell." Worgen vanished.

"She's been cranky ever since we rescued you," Rin explained, scratching the back of her head in embarrassment. "She kept complaining about the bloodstains on her robe and I told her to stop complaining about every little thing that stains her robe."

"Minotaur can be annoying most of the time, too," Jiro said.

"Well, I should apply more medicine to your wounds then," Rin said and she left the room. She came back a moment later with a small container filled with a clear substance. "I made a poultice from medicinal berries and herbs. I learned how to from my mother," Rin said, her eyes suddenly sad after mentioning her mother. "It'll sting a little, but it'll prevent infection." Rin removed the bandages from Jiro's arms and applied the poultice on the scratches on his arms. Jiro winced as the medicine stung his cuts. After Rin was done applying the medicine, she wrapped new bandages around his arms.

"Now try to sit up, Jiro," Rin said. Jiro slowly got up, pain slowing him down. Rin removed the bandages on his chest, cringing at the wound. Jiro looked down. Dried blood covered his chest and he could clearly see where the skin had been ripped away.

"Now this will sting like crazy." Rin warned as she started to apply the medicine. Jiro screamed at the burning pain. It continued even after Rin put new bandages on him.

"Your wounds are healing quickly, at least," Rin commented. Jiro could only lay back and wait for the pain to ebb away. "Since you'll be staying with me for awhile, I may as well show you around. But first, PUL-EEZ put some clothes on! I REALLY can't stand seeing your polka-dot underwear." Jiro's face went red and his eyes grew large with embarrassment. Rin left the room as Jiro put the clothes on. They matched almost perfectly with his old ones. Rin came back in when he was done and she wrapped Jiro's right arm around her neck as they went around the house. After that, they went outside.

"Is this. . . sword training equipment?" Jiro asked when he saw the sword dummies around the house.

"Yeah," Rin said, " I train in sword fighting. When you get better, you can practice on these." She caught a dark figure in the bushes out of the corner of her eye and she turned to see what it was, but it had disappeared.

"What is it?" Jiro asked

"It's nothing. . ." Rin responded, shaking her head. They went back inside the house.

Meanwhile, an informant was dashing out of the forest. He had followed a lead on a girl buying clothes that matched Jiro's, as well as her buying a lot of medical supplies. He had completed his mission to obtain Jiro's location. It was now time to report back to Sui.


	6. Chapter 6

As some of you may have figured out, the Shadow, Worgen, is based off the Worgen race in World of Warcraft. Please review so I get an idea on how well I'm doing one the story so far. I am amazed on how many people are viewing this daily. I hope you're all enjoying this! When school starts up again, the story won't be updated as often.

"Is this the place?" Shu asked Sui when they came to a house in the middle of a forest near the canyon where Jiro and Delphinium were fighting.

"According to the informant, he saw Jiro and an older girl outside," Sui said.

"I wonder how large of a rack that girl has, maro!" Marumaro said, getting perverted. This earned him a punch from Kluke.

"Knock it off, already!" Kluke told him. Marumaro rubbed his head where Kluke had pounded him.

"Let's go up there, already!" Shu insisted, getting impatient. The group walked up to the door and Sui knocked. A moment later, a black-haired teenage girl opened the door.

"Hello, my name's Rin," the girl said." What do you guys want?"

"We have information that you have a boy named Jiro with you," Sui explained.

"Ah, so you guys are with the kid then," Rin said. "Come on in." Rin led them into the bedroom where Jiro was resting. Bouquet ran over and hugged him.

"We were all so worried for you Jiro!" Bouquet cried out as Jiro struggled in her embrace. Shu cracked up at this.

"Bouquet!" Jiro yelled. "You're hurting me!"

"Oops, sorry!" Bouquet quickly apologized before letting go of a gasping Jiro. She ran back over to Shu and stood next to him.

"How'd you guys find me?" Jiro asked after he caught his breath from Bouquet suffocating him.

"I sent out informants to track you down," Sui explained. "One saw you and Rin outside."

"I see. . ." Rin said. "You guys are welcome to stay here if you want."

"Thanks!" Shu and the others exclaimed.

"I'm going to head back to Korrin," Sui said before heading out the door.

"Touchy Time, maro!" Marumaro exclaimed before leaping on Rin and sticking his face in between her boobs. Rin screamed and summoned Worgen, who wrenched Marumaro off and pounded him.

"Wow!" Shu exclaimed. "You're a Shadow Wielder, too!"

"I take it you guys are as well?" Rin asked. The others nodded. "Well then, please keep this pervert at least thirty feet away from me at all times!"

"Now you know what we have to deal with on a daily basis," Kluke said, embarrassment in her face. Everyone else just laughed.

A deep growl echoed throughout a dark cavern. Cold gripped the air. A rumble echoed throughout the cavern. In the deepest part of the cavern, a gigantic purple-back crystal poked out of the ground. It started to crack as the rumbling got worse. Suddenly, the crystal shattered.

"Free. . . I'm free. . ." a deep voice growled. Two glowing sky-blue eyes with narrow white pupils pierced the dark cavern. The rumbling started up again as the creature let out a deafening roar. "Revenge shall be mine!"

**Well, now I've got the problem in the story introduced. These six chapters are pretty much the prologue of the whole story. Keep looking for more updates!**


	7. Chapter 7

Weeks passed since Shu and the others came to Rin's house. A couple of days after they came, Jiro began sword training with Rin. Rin had a sword that's been passed down from generation to generation. The blade of the sword was made out of a mixture of steel and silver. On each side of the blade was an intricate pattern of curling and intertwining lines made of a thin layer of gold. An ocean blue gem was in the center of the pattern. On the black hilt of the sword was a very detailed design of a golden eastern dragon, which looked like it was coiling its body around the hilt. Its eyes were tiny rubies that glittered when light hit them. On the bottom of the hilt was what looked like a dragon's hand grasping a blood-red orb.

Finally, Jiro's wounds were fully healed. Rin decided to join Shu and the others on their journey. Jiro also rejoined them again.

"We need to look for Delphinium first," Jiro said when they got out of the forest.

"But where is she?" Bouquet asked. There was complete silence after she asked that. Finally, Shu spoke up.

"We should defeat Logi first," he said.

"Good idea," Kluke agreed, "he'll be easier to find and we could run into Delphinium as well. She's been at Logi for awhile now."

"Alright, then," Rin said, "Let's go look for Logi first." Everyone agreed except Andropov, who remained silent.

"Andropov?" Kluke asked. Hearing his name seemed to snap Andropov back to reality.

"Okay, I'll go to then," Andropov said reluctantly.

"Let's find him then!" Shu exclaimed.

* * *

The cavern began to crumble as the creature walked out of it. It was nighttime. The giant beast had a golden beak with rows of razor-sharp teeth. A golden crest was on top of its head. It also had a large black body with a red striped underbelly. Its four legs and two arms made it somewhat resemble a centaur. Long, white lethal claws glinted in the moonlight. Its long black tail swished back and forth. At the end of the tail were four spikes, two on each side of the tail. The creature spread out its large, black wings with golden claws at the end of them. Underneath the wings, black shadowy creatures spawned. They were about as tall as a full-grown man. The beast was four times larger then them. The smaller creatures resembled the creatures that came out of the Darkness two and a half years ago. Some had wings and some didn't. They all carried some type of sword and they all wore black armor.

"Now," the giant beast roared, "Kill the descendants of the Seven Soldiers of Light and the Guardian of the Light."

"Yes, Master Shade," The smaller creatures replied in unison. They set off in pursuit of the Shadow Wielders.


	8. Chapter 8

"So when will we find this Logi person?" Rin asked.

"Dunno," Shu replied, "But he doesn't seem to ever leave us alone." As if his words summoned him, Logi's battleship appeared over the horizon.

"Enemy Shadow Wielders sighted, General Logi!" one of the crew members said.

"Deploy the Type Sixes!" Logi ordered. The automatons leapt off the ship and flew towards the Shadow Wielders. Shu, Rin, and the others summoned their Shadows. The automatons did the same.

"Hippopon, Hippotama Transform!" Bouquet cried out as she and Hippo merged with Saber-Tiger. The automatons landed. There were about two dozen.

"This should be no problem!" Blue Dragon said.

"Crushing Nail!" Shu yelled as Blue Dragon slashed apart three of the automatons.

"Conquer!" Jiro called out while Minotaur let out a blast of lightning at one of the automatons. One of the automaton's Shadow swung its sword at Andropov.

"Feather Protect!" Kluke said as a barrier protected Andropov from the attack.

"Rock Weapon!" Andropov shouted while Albiheim shot crystals at the automaton that attacked him. The automaton blew up, along with another as Saber-Tiger used Blitz Claw on it.

"Blazing Inferno!" Rin shouted while Worgen whipped her staff at the rest of the automatons. Fire shot out of it and spread out like a tidal wave when it hit the ground, engulfing the rest of the automatons in flames.

"General Logi!" one of the pilots exclaimed. "An unknown enemy is attacking! We're taking massive internal damage!"

"Pull out now!" Logi ordered. Rin looked up as Logi's ship turned around.

"He's getting away!" Kluke exclaimed.

"Not for long!" Rin replied. "Tempest!" Worgen held her staff above her head. A giant ball of lightning formed above it. Worgen threw it at the ship. It hit the side of the ship and blew up.

"Logi, sir!" a soldier exclaimed. "Engine Three has been hit!"

"Get us out of here already!" Logi shouted. The ship disappeared over the mountains before Rin could hit the ship again.

"Awesome attack, Rin!" Bouquet exclaimed after she and Hippo separated from Saber-Tiger.

"Thanks," Rin said, blushing. Everyone's Shadows disappeared.

"We need to follow him," Jiro said. The others nodded. Suddenly, Marumaro doubled over, clutching his stomach.

"What's wrong, Marumaro?" Kluke asked, worry in her voice.

". . . I'm so hungry, maro," Marumaro groaned. Kluke let out a huge sigh.

"Is that all? You really had me worried!" Kluke said, putting her hands on her hips. Rin chuckled.

"It looks like there's a town up ahead," she said. "We can get something to eat and find an inn to rest at."

"Good idea," Andropov agreed. The seven of them headed into the town, found something to eat, and stayed at an inn for the night. The girls slept in one room while the boys slept in the other.

"Say, Rin," Kluke said when everyone else fell asleep, "do you like Jiro?"

"Wh-why do you ask?" Rin stammered, blushing.

"Well, I've seen the way Jiro looks at you," Kluke replied. "He looks at you the same way Bouquet looks at Shu. I was just wondering if you felt the same about him."

"Hmm. . ." said Rin, still blushing, "I'll just wait and see." This seemed to satisfy Kluke as she fell asleep. Before Rin fell asleep, one thought buzzed through her head: Could it be true? Could Jiro really love me?


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning, the group headed out.

"Where now, then?" Bouquet asked

"We need to follow Logi," Shu replied.

"By the way. . ." Kluke suddenly said, "don't you guys think it's weird how Logi suddenly fled the battle yesterday instead of coming out to fight us?"

"Come to think of it, it IS weird," Bouquet agreed.

"Maybe he just got cold feet, maro!" Marumaro chuckled.

"Don't you dare say that about General Logi!" Andropov shouted. "He would never back down from a battle unless it was for a good reason!"

"Yeah, and that reason is that we're too damn tough for him now, maro!" Marumaro retorted.

"That is it!" Andropov snarled. Marumaro had pushed Andropov's buttons, big-time! Andropov leapt at Marumaro, pinning him down. Marumaro bit Andropov's left arm and Andropov let go of him, holding his arm in pain. Marumaro got up and head butted Andropov in the gut, knocking the breath out of him. The two wrestled around, swearing at each other until Rin and Jiro were finally able to pry them apart.

"We won't get anywhere with you two fighting all the time!" Rin scolded. Andropov and Marumaro just turned their back to each other, letting out a 'Hmph!'

Rin just sighed.

"We should get going, then," Shu said. The others nodded. Blue Dragon, Phoenix, Saber-Tiger, and Worgen were summoned. Shu and Bouquet flew on Blue Dragon, Kluke and Andropov flew on Phoenix, Marumaro went alone on Saber-Tiger, and Rin and Jiro flew on Worgen.

As they flew on, Jiro began wondering what the reason was for Logi retreating. He started to suspect that there was yet another mysterious threat lurking in the shadows, ready to strike.


	10. Chapter 10

Delphinium walked onward, aware of someone following her. She spun around at the sound of rustling bushes and looked in them. There was nothing.

"Must be the wind," she muttered.

"Must be! Must be!" Deathroy said. Delphinium turned around and continued walking. The bushes rustled again as a dark shape rose out of the ground. Its bright red eyes were fixed on Delphinium.

"Sir! We've assessed the damage done to the ship by the unknown enemy," a soldier reported. "We eliminated the intruders and captured one as ordered. Engine Three is damaged beyond repair and many pieces of equipment have been destroyed!"

"Good work, soldier," Logi said. "Now return to your station."

"Yes, sir!" the soldier replied before leaving the head of the ship. Logi left the head as well and entered the laboratory. A black shadowy creature was trapped inside a shatterproof glass dome. It pounded and scratched in an effort to escape.

"Well?" Logi asked one of the scientists. "What do we have so far on our little friend here?"

"We've found that its physical makeup is very similar to the creatures in the Darkness," the scientist replied. "However, its physical strength far surpasses those creatures."

"So what you're saying is that these creatures are enhanced versions of the ones that came out of the Darkness?" Logi asked.

"That's what we've concluded, sir!" the scientist responded.

"Very good. Keep finding out more," said Logi'

"Yes, sir!" the scientist replied before getting back to work. The creature screeched as a scan was run on it.

Could the Darkness be releasing itself? Logi wondered. Or could something else be spawning them?


	11. Chapter 11

After flying for a while, Shu and the others set up camp in a forest just over the mountains. While Bouquet was cooking food, Jiro decided that he needed some space and took a walk. After a short while, Jiro came across a stream and bent down to drink. He almost fell in when he heard a voice behind him.

"Jiro, I need to have a talk with you." It was Rin. Jiro got up to face her.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked.

"Um, well, not exactly," Rin replied scratching the back of her head. "I just needed to ask you something."

"Go on," Jiro prompted.

"Well, uh, I just wanted to know how you really feel about me," Rin said.

"Wh-what do you mean by that?" Jiro stammered, cheeks turning a crimson red.

"Well," Rin said, her voice getting a little bolder, "whenever I said I was going out to train you would immediately ask to join me."

"Well, I need to get stronger," Jiro replied, his voice getting defensive.

"You also wanted to ride with me and Worgen this morning," Rin added, her voice firmer with an edge of annoyance to it.

"Well Andropov wouldn't possibly let me fly with Kluke, Shu and I would more than likely start a fight, and Marumaro just freaks me out," Jiro pointed out.

"Well what about the way you look at me when I'm not looking!" Rin snapped in an aggressive tone.

"What? !" Jiro exclaimed, his cheeks bright red.

"Don't play stupid with me!" Rin shouted. "Kluke told me all about it back at the inn!"

"Sh-she did? !" Jiro stammered.

"That's right! And I want to know what the deal is!" suddenly, Rin's voice softened. "Jiro, I just want to know. Do you really love me?" Just as Jiro opened his mouth to respond, Bouquet came crashing out of the bushes.

"We're being attacked!" Bouquet cried out.

"What? !" Rin and Jiro both exclaimed. All three went running back to camp. When they got back, the others were fighting black shadowy creatures. Half a dozen were flying above them, shooting beams of energy. The group had already summoned their Shadows and were fighting back. Blue Dragon took out one of the flying creatures with Blue Explosion. Some were trying to beat down Kluke's shield with their swords. Kluke and Phoenix struggled to hold the shield.

"Crystal Square!" Andropov cried out and Albiheim stunned the creatures attacking Kluke. Marumaro and Saber-Tiger took them out with Sonic Scissors.

"You're back, maro!" Marumaro exclaimed. Rin, Jiro, and Bouquet summoned their Shadows.

"Hippopon, Hippotama Transform!" Bouquet said as she and Hippo merged with Saber-Tiger.

"Eternal Breath!" Kluke cried out as Phoenix incinerated the rest of the flying creatures. Some of the ones on the ground leapt at Rin and Jiro. The creatures slashed at them with their swords and Rin and Jiro drew out theirs.

"Waves of Rage!" Jiro shouted as one stabbed at Minotaur. The creature screamed before dissipating in a cloud of smoke.

"Jiro!" Minotaur exclaimed. One was leaping at them from behind. Minotaur tried to dodge, but its sword sunk into his left shoulder. Jiro screamed and clutched his shoulder and the pain was transferred to him. The creature pulled its sword free and prepared to deliver the final blow.

"Chain Lightning!" Rin shouted. Worgen shot out a bolt of lightning at the attacking creature. It screamed as it was hit before exploding.

"I suggest you watch your back from now on," Worgen sneered at Minotaur. Minotaur glared at her as she and Rin defeated more of the creatures. The number of enemies had noticeable decreased. Blue Dragon and Shu took out more with Crushing Nail. Kluke took out another attacker with Eternal Breath. One of the creatures sunk its sword in Albiheim. Andropov smiled as his Shadow crystallized the sword and the creature before shattering them. Saber-Tiger ripped through one with Blitz Claw.

"I think it's time to end this," Rin said when only four remained. "Slicing Wind!" Worgen whipped her staff across her body, a strong wind following it. The creatures were ripped in two, along with a few nearby rocks and trees. She turned to everyone. "Is everyone okay?" They all nodded and everyone's Shadows vanished. However, everyone, including Rin, had cuts and scrapes on their bodies. Bouquet dashed over to Shu.

"Darling! You're bleeding!" she exclaimed. One cut on Shu's arm was bleeding and Bouquet immediately began treating it, despite Shu insisting that he was okay. Rin sighed. Jiro thought he saw a flash of fear in Rin's eyes, but it quickly vanished, so Jiro thought he simply imagined it.

After all, he thought, we won, so what reason does she need to be scared.

Suddenly, Jiro began to wonder if Rin secretly knew something about the creature that the others didn't know about, one that could spell disaster for them all.


	12. Chapter 12

Wow! I can't believe how far I've gotten in the story in such a short time! I had added 7 chapters yesterday! Still, expect the story to eventually be finished! I may even try making a season 4! Back to the story!

* * *

"Where are we heading again?" Shu asked Rin as the group flew across the land.

"For the last time, you'll see!" Rin snapped.

"But why can't you just tell us already?" Shu insisted.

"Just shut the hell up already!" Rin was losing her patience quickly from Shu asking where they were going every two minutes. Shu got her hint and quickly shut his mouth. Eventually, Rin flew down to the ruins of a town. The others followed. Worgen, Blue Dragon, Phoenix, and Saber-Tiger vanished when they all landed.

Rin stopped at a house. Like the others, most of it was destroyed. Most of the walls remained, but the roof was gone. Rin walked inside in silence. Shu thought he saw tears forming in her eyes as she looked around. Furniture was strewn across the floor. Cabinets were wrecked and barely hanging on the walls. The floor was singed. Rin went across the house to stairs leading down into a basement.

The basement was still in good shape. On one wall was a small blue gem. Rin walked over to it and held up the wrist with the blue gem bracelet. Both the gem and the bracelet glowed with a blue light before blue symbols appeared above the gem. Rin tapped on some in a certain order. As she pressed each one, they appeared below the gem. When she was finished she pressed the gem. A blue line divide the wall as it opened to reveal a secret passage. Rin walked inside, followed by the others who were dying to know what in the world was happening.

Shu noticed that at the end of the secret passage was a pedestal with a book on top. Rin picked the book up and blew the dust off. The book looked ancient.

"Alright," Rin said as she carefully placed the book in her pack, "let's get going."

"Hold on a second!" Shu suddenly exclaimed. "What in the world is this place? !" Rin lowered her gaze as tears spilled out of her eyes.

"This was my house. . ." Rin finally responded. Shu suddenly wished he hadn't asked her that. Jiro smacked Shu upside the head, shooting him a glare. Shu was about to do the same, but decided not to. Jiro was right.

The group left the house and flew to Logic. There, they stayed at another inn for the night. When Shu got the chance, he went over to Rin.

"Sorry for what I said earlier," Shu apologized.

"Don't sweat it," Rin replied, taking Shu by surprise.

"By the way," Shu continued, "What is that book anyway? I can't read the words." On the cover of the book were letters that Shu didn't understand.

"Well, I came from the Drake Clan," Rin responded. "In ancient times, we were isolated from all others. We had our own writing and language that was never translated to others."

"So you can read the book then, right?" Shu asked. "Why is it so important?"

"Because," Rin replied, holding the book up, "this book explains what we're up against.


	13. Chapter 13

A yellow hand smacked Jiro square in the face, waking him up. Marumaro was snoring away right next to him. Jiro pushed his hand off, but Marumaro rolled right on top of Jiro.

"Oomph!" Jiro gasped. For a kid that barely came up to his waist, Marumaro was HEAVY! Jiro struggled to get the Devee off of him, but Marumaro wouldn't budge. Right when Jiro thought his ribs would break, Marumaro rolled off of Jiro and right over the bed.

Jiro flinched when Marumaro landed with a sickening thud. He checked to see if Marumaro was okay, but the kid just kept sleeping away, as if nothing had happened.

"Geez," Jiro muttered to himself, "doesn't anything wake that kid up?" Finding that he couldn't go back to sleep, Jiro got out of bed and decided to go for a walk. When he got to the bottom of the stairs into the lobby, he saw Rin at a table, reading the book she had found.

"Can't sleep, Jiro?" Rin asked without looking up from her book. From the tone of her voice, Jiro guessed she hadn't forgotten their previous conversation in the forest.

"I have the overweight Devee to thank for that," Jiro responded. "Why are you up?" Rin set the book down on the table.

"First of all, I never went to sleep," Rin responded. "Second of all, with what this book describes, I can't afford to waste time sleeping."

"What do you mean?" Jiro asked, his curiosity rising.

"This book is title The True Darkness," Rin responded.

"The true. . . Darkness?" asked Jiro.

"Do you remember when you and the other Soldiers of Light sealed away the Darkness?" Rin asked him. Jiro nodded. He would never forget about what had happened in there. . . about Zola's betrayal.

"Well," Rin continued, "the Darkness is really just an offspring of the real threat in the world."

"What? !" Jiro exclaimed.

"According to this book," Rin said, "when this world was born, so to was a creature. The extraordinary amount of energy given off from the creature enveloped the world, becoming what we called the Darkness. Shortly after the Darkness was sealed away, the creature went on a rampage, nearly destroying the world. Then came a Shadow Wielder from the Drake Clan." Rin paused for a moment. "My ancestor."

"Wait a minute!" Jiro suddenly interrupted. "Why isn't any of this mentioned in the Book of the Beginning?"

"Only my clan knew how the Darkness was born," Rin replied before continuing. "Now, my ancestor linked the seal on the creature to the seal on the Darkness. If the Darkness had completely consumed the world, the creature would also be freed. You guys sealing the Darkness away again saved the seal on the creature, but the amount of time that the Darkness had been free had greatly weakened the seal so that the creature could eventually free itself."

"So what your saying is that this creature is freeing itself right now? !" Jiro exclaimed.

"My hunch is that it's already free," Rin said. "In the book, it says that this creature spawns other creatures with their description mating the ones that attacked us. They're referred to as shadowlings, with the main creature being named Shade."

"So you need to seal this Shade creature again?" Jiro asked. Rin nodded.

"I honestly don't know how to seal it away and I'm hoping that this book will reveal how to," Rin said. "Worse-case scenario, I'll need to fight it if I can't find out how to seal it away."

"But if your ancestor couldn't do it, what makes you think you can?" Jiro asked her.

"Well, I will have the help of five of the Seven Soldiers of Light to help me out, won't I?" Rin asked. Jiro smiled.

"Of course you will!" Jiro responded.

"Well, we've got a lot of work to do then!" Rin said as she went back to reading the book. The fate of the world now rested in her hands!


	14. Chapter 14

Delphinium knew it! She was being followed! The creature that now stood in front of her raised its sword, ready for battle. Delphinium summoned Chimera and drew out her own sword.

The creature made the first move, lunging at Delphinium head-on. Chimera threw a punch at it, but the black creature jumped out of the way.

"Graviton Ball!" Delphinium shouted as Chimera threw a ball of dark energy at the creature. The enemy dodged, but the attack hit its side, tearing away some of its armor. Delphinium rushed towards it, ready to slice it in two. The creature used its own sword to block the attack. Chimera threw another punch at it. The creature broke its sword lock with Delphinium and ducked out of the way and lashed its sword at Delphinium. She tried to dodge, but the sword ripped at her side.

Delphinium backed away, clutching her side, felling warm moisture spreading, and she knew that if she were to look down, she would see a dark red spot spreading throughout her clothes.

When the creature lunged again, Delphinium was ready. She dodged the sword as she used her own to slice its hand off. The creature screamed and Chimera swung a punch at it, sending it flying into a tree. Chimera then released another Graviton Ball at it. This time, the attack hit and all that was left of the creature were a few wisps of smoke.

"What was that thing?" Delphinium said.

"What is it? What is it?" Deathroy said. Delphinium glanced around to see if there were any other surprises waiting, but nothing came out. Delphinium gasped as the wound burned with pain. She trudged on, seeing a town up ahead. Delphinium decided to tend to her wound there before setting off again to hunt down Logi. He would pay for betraying Lord Nene two and a half years ago.


	15. Chapter 15

The next morning, Rin told everyone about what she had found so far in the book.

". . . and I want each of you to go around Logic to look for other books relating to what happened after the Darkness," Rin told them. "We need to be prepared." The others nodded in understanding and set off.

"Hey, Shu," Bouquet said to Shu in a singsong voice when they were out of earshot. "Why don't we also check out wedding and parenting books while we're at it."

"No way in hell I'm doing that," Shu grumbled, closing his eyes in annoyance.

"Hmph!" Bouquet replied, puffing out her cheeks in frustration. "You're no fun at all!"

"And I plan to keep it that way," Shu told her. She could get on his nerves most of the time.

* * *

Kluke and Andropov went to the National Library to find a book.

"Don't you think that we should keep an eye on Marumaro, Andropov?" Kluke asked.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Andropov assured her.

"I just don't think he'll be able to stay in control of himself," Kluke said

"Well if we hear a girl scream, we'll know that you're right," Andropov said, half chuckling. Kluke smacked him.

"It's not funny, Andropov. It's embarrassing!" Kluke scolded.

"Hey! I was just joking!" Andropov said.

* * *

Meanwhile. . .

"EEK! Get away from me, you pervert! !" a girl screamed as Marumaro flipped up her skirt.

"Hmm. . ." Marumaro muttered, "not very impressive panties on you."

"SHUT UP, YOU FREAK!" the girl shouted as she sunk her fist into Marumaro's face. Marumaro flew into a store wall, nose bleeding and smiling. The girl stormed over and was about to kick him. Marumaro hopped up just in time and hung on to her chest.

"You're boobs are nice and plump, though," Marumaro said. The girl began to beat him with her purse, trying to get the little creep off of her. Marumaro felt something grab onto his cape and lift him off of the girl. Marumaro turned his head to see a large, muscular man holding him up.

"Nobody messes with my girl!" he snarled before chucking Marumaro into a flower stand. The owner screamed as Marumaro landed in a bouquet of roses.

"YEOWCH!" Marumaro screamed as he leapt three feet straight up in the air, his back full of thorns.

"Get outta there!" The shopkeeper yelled at him. She started towards Marumaro, holding a broom in one hand. Marumaro took this as a hint that he had overstayed his welcome and bolted out of there as fast as he could.

* * *

"So this is the best one that you could find?" Jiro asked the librarian.

"I apologize, but we didn't have that many books on the subject that you wanted," the librarian replied.

"Well, I guess I'll have to make do with this then," Jiro said. After having the book checked out, he went outside. He had barely gone three feet from the bottom of the steps when Marumaro plowed him over.

"Watch where you're going, you klutz!" Jiro shouted.

"No time to stop, maro! Need to get away from those guys!" Marumaro replied in a panicked voice. Jiro turned when he heard shouts coming their way.

"GET BACK HERE, YOU PERVERT!" a woman shouted, charging full speed at him. She was followed by a muscular man.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR DOING THAT TO MY WOMAN!" he shouted. Marumaro cringed before charging away again. The couple stopped at Jiro, who was getting up.

"Are you with that freak? !" The girl demanded.

"Well, kinda," Jiro responded.

"You tell your little perverted friend took keep his grubby little hands off my boobs, or I'll make sure he never gets out of the hospital!" The girl snapped before turning away.

"You've been warned!" The man said before turning around to follow the woman.

"Is it safe now, maro?" Marumaro asked cautiously, peering around behind a bookstand.

"All clear," Jiro sighed before shooting a hostile glare at the Devee. Marumaro gulped. "Now get out of here before I punish you as well." Marumaro sped away, leaving Jiro to pick up the books he dropped. One day, I'm gonna strangle that little brat! Jiro thought.

* * *

"Now," Rin said when everyone got back to the inn, "what did you guys find?"

"We got a book on the aftermath of the Darkness being sealed," Kluke said, placing the book on the table in front of her and Andropov.

"The librarian gave me a few books on an event called The Great Disaster," Jiro said. "She had told me that this event took place after the Darkness was sealed."

"Good. Now what about you two?" Rin asked Shu and Bouquet.

"Well, we also got a book on The Great Disaster," Shu replied.

"And what about you, Marumaro?" Rin asked him.

"I think he was too busy groping girls to find one," Jiro said, a hint of annoyance in his voice. Kluke smacked Marumaro upside the head.

"YOU. . . LITTLE. . . IDIOT!" Kluke screamed in Marumaro's ear. Rin rubbed her forehead.

"Stupid pervert. . ." Rin muttered to herself. She then gazed at all of the books that were laid out on the table. "We need to read these and see if we can find anything about a creature named Shade, or how to seal him away again.

"If they're anything like the Book of the Beginning, I doubt we'll find a way that easily," Kluke said.

"We need to try anyway," Shu told her.

"Right," Rin agreed. "We need to stop this before it becomes a much greater threat than it already is." Everyone else nodded as they went to work. Kluke took Marumaro out to find a book, pulling the Devee by the ear. Marumaro protested, but Kluke took no notice. Rin sighed. They needed to be ready for this.

* * *

**Well, that's chapter 15! Please review! I do think that this was the funniest chapter, though. The story is far from done!**


	16. Chapter 16

Inside a dark forest, the creature, Shade, awaited the report on how the assault on the Shadow Wielders went. Eventually, darks spots dotted the forest floor as the shadowlings rose up.

"Well?" Shade asked.

"The Shadow Wielders have killed all the shadowlings that were sent out to kill them. One was captured," One off the shadowlings responded. Shade's eyes burned and he let out s roar. The shadowlings cowered. Shade lashed his long tail back and forth.

"Send out the alphas!" Shade ordered. "Do not rest until those Shadow Wielders are dead!" The shadowlings went back into the ground again. When the spots vanished, Shade opened his mouth and fired a black energy beam in rage. Hundreds of trees were destroyed in an instant. "If, this doesn't work, I'll have to settle this myself."

* * *

Rin was reading the book she had found when Bouquet entered the room.

"What is it, Bouquet?" Rin asked.

"I just wanted to know how you were doing so far," Bouquet replied.

"Well, to tell the truth, not so well," Rin said. Bouquet perked her head up.

"What do you mean?" Bouquet asked, putting a finger to her chin in curiosity.

"Well, this book mainly describes the birth of Shade, but nothing much on his power, or even how he was sealed," Rin replied. She turned to Bouquet. "Find anything, yet?" Bouquet shook her head.

"Not really," She responded sadly. "None of us are able to find a single thing about sealing Shade. The books only talk about the lives of humanity after the Darkness was sealed away. In the books talking about the Great Disaster, they only talked about how humanity almost perished having to adapt without the Darkness."

"Well, I guess this book is our only hope then," Rin sighed. Bouquet left. Rin continued to read the book

Maybe the answer is hidden in the texts somewhere, or maybe there's another book out there that has the answer, Rin wondered. Whichever the case, she knew for a fact that they were in for a hard time.

* * *

"Why do you have to keep following me, maro?" Marumaro asked Kluke and they headed out to return the books.

"Because we can't trust you with what happened yesterday," Kluke responded coldly.

"I couldn't help it, maro," Marumaro said. "That lady's boobs were almost as large as Bouquet's, maro"

"That doesn't mean you should go squeezing them!" Kluke snapped.

* * *

Jiro and Shu went out into the forest to train. They each summoned their Shadows.

"You'd better prepare yourself, Shu!" Jiro said

"I am prepared!" Shu retorted.

"Bring it!" Jiro said, shifting into a fighting stance. Blue Dragon rushed towards Minotaur, ready to punch him. Minotaur dodged and returned the punch. It his Blue Dragon square in the jaw. Shu rubbed his as he felt the pain.

"Crushing Nail!" Shu shouted as Blue Dragon's claws glowed with energy. He swiped at Minotaur. It barely scratched him as Jiro powered up.

"Waves of Rage!" he shouted while Minotaur released a series of punches. Blue Dragon used the claws to block the attack.

"Now!" Shu shouted. Blue Dragon swung both glowing claws at Minotaur when he was open for a split second. The attack hit and Minotaur and Jiro were sent flying into a tree. Jiro grunted as he got up.

"Not bad, Shu," Jiro said as he smiled. "You seem to have gotten better than last time." Jiro powered up again. "Sky Terror!" Minotaur's horns glowed as he lowered his head and sped towards Blue Dragon. Shu powered up.

"Blue Explosion!" Shu shouted as Blue Dragon released blue flames at Minotaur. It hit him, but Minotaur didn't stop and rammed into Blue Dragon. When the smoke had cleared from Blue Explosion, Shu and Jiro were on their backs, eyes closed and panting. Both their Shadows had disappeared. Shu and Jiro were covered in scratches, some bleeding. They got up.

"Heh. . ." Jiro said as he wiped the blood dripping from his mouth. "That was a good match."

"Yeah," Shu agreed, holding his side. "Lets get back."

* * *

When Rin saw Jiro and Shu, she nearly strangled them.

"What the hell were you two doing? !" she demanded. "Training is not supposed to get this bad!"

"Can't you just do something for our wounds?" Shu asked.

"Gah! Fine!" Rin huffed. As she bandaged the two, Shu and Jiro could hear her swearing under her breath. It wasn't too hard to guess that she was swearing at them.

"If these two damn idiots continue to do this, I'll run out of all my damn supplies," Rin muttered. She said more things, but they were pretty harsh. One sentence made Shu and Jiro flinch.

"Uh, sorry," Shu apologized when Rin was done. Rin didn't say anything and got up.

"I'm turning in," she announced, her voice sour. The others decided not to bother her.

"You two need to be more careful!" Kluke told them harshly. "We can't afford to waste supplies!"

"We get it Kluke!" Shu replied. Kluke punched him in the face.

"Don't you use that tone with me!" she said. Jiro sighed. He looked up in surprise when he saw Kluke's fist heading towards him. Jiro was sent flying into the wall.

"You should also know better, Jiro!" Kluke scolded.

"Geez, don't need to do that to me!" Jiro muttered under his breath. Kluke stormed upstairs.

"It's getting late," she said, her voice still aggressive. "We should all turn in for the night."

"Fine," Shu muttered as he got up. His cheek was throbbing from where Kluke punched him. Jiro got up to. Everyone went upstairs and went to bed, but most of them couldn't fall asleep. They were anxious for morning.


	17. Chapter 17

The next morning, the group left Logic. They were walking for a little while when Shu broke the silence.

"Why are these ruins we're going to so important?" Shu asked Rin.

"They may offer hints about how to seal away Shade," Rin responded. Movement caught her eye and she signaled with her right hand for the others to stop. Rin listened closely as silence took over. She heard movement and turned her head. Several shadowlings leapt out at them instantly from the treetops. They were much larger than ordinary shadowlings; their armor thicker and larger weapons.

"Alphas!" Rin shouted. She summoned her Shadow. The others did the same. Bouquet and Hippo merged with Blue Dragon.

"This will be a piece of cake!" Blue Dragon said.

"Don't underestimate them!" Rin warned, but Blue Dragon charged at them nonetheless. An alpha swung its sword and repelled Blue Dragon. He and Shu were sent flying sideways.

"What power. . ." Blue Dragon grunted as he got up. Shu got up as well, rubbing his back.

"These guys are much stronger than ordinary shadowlings; they're the best of the best!" Rin told the others.

"Great. . ." Jiro mumbled.

"So how do we stop them, then?" Andropov asked.

"Kluke and Phoenix, you two provide backup," Rin instructed. Kluke nodded. "Saber-Tiger and Marumaro, you guys keep them distracted. Jiro and Andropov, use your long-distance attacks. Shu and Blue Dragon, do close-range. Worgen and I will do long-range as well." Everyone nodded as they received their instructions.

Saber-Tiger made the first move, lashing out at the leading alpha. The alpha countered with a punch.

"Ugh, they're strong. . ." Saber-Tiger grunted as he recovered from the attack.

"Keep going!" Rin said. "Use your speed!" Saber-Tiger dashed around behind the alphas, using Blitz Claw at one of them. It screamed as the attack ripped at it and it spun around, swinging its sword. Saber-Tiger dodged just in time.

"Ice Spear!" Rin shouted as Worgen held her staff in front of her. Shards of ice formed and hovered around the staff. Worgen thrust her staff out and the shards of ice shot out at the alphas. The alphas held their arms up to defend themselves.

At that moment, Jiro use Conquer, stunning the alphas while Albiheim used Rock Weapon on them. It tore off some of their armor. Blue Dragon shot out and sliced into a few of them with the blade, killing them. The others jumped out, swords primed to strike.

"Feather Protect!" Kluke called out while a blue shield protected Shu and Blue Dragon from the incoming assault. However, a couple turned their attention to Kluke and dashed towards her and Phoenix.

"Kluke! Watch out!" Jiro shouted, but it was too late. One alpha ripped its sword into one of Phoenix's wings while another swung its sword at Kluke, slicing her shirt and leaving a large, bleeding cut on her stomach. Phoenix disappeared as Kluke collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

"NO! ! !" Andropov screamed as he ran towards the alphas that took Kluke down. One alpha went up behind Andropov and sunk its sword into Andropov's side, causing blood to splatter everywhere. He screamed as pain seized him and he collapsed as well, Albiheim disappearing.

"K-Kluke. . ." Andropov moaned, reaching his hand out towards Kluke before falling unconscious.

"KLUKE! ANDROPOV!" Shu shouted. Blue Dragon used Blue Evolution on the alphas that took the two down. Shu gasped as an alpha stabbed Blue Dragon through the back. Bouquet and Hippo separated from Blue Dragon when he vanished. Shu was on the ground, curled up and grunting in pain. The alpha stood over him, ready to finish Shu off.

"NOO! ! !" Bouquet cried out while Hippo rammed into the alpha, knocking it off balance and sending it a few feet away from her and Shu. However, the alpha got back up in an instant and thrust its sword forward. Tears filled Bouquets eyes as the sword came closer. A flash of dark green passed her. Jiro was standing in front of Bouquet, arms out wide to defend her. The sword passed right through the middle of Jiro's body and was pulled out instantly. Jiro let out a cry of pain as he fell to his hands and knees, coughing up blood. He collapsed on his side, unconscious.

"You'll never get away with that, maro!" Marumaro screamed as he and Saber-Tiger killed it with Sonic Scissors, along with another that tried to kill Bouquet.

Only three alphas remained. The growled when their comrade dissipated in a cloud of black smoke. One went after Saber-Tiger, another went after Bouquet and Hippo, and the last went after Rin and Worgen.

"None of you alphas will live!" Rin shouted as she dodged the alpha's sword and sunk her own into its body. Worgen shot out fire and the alpha screamed as it was burned to ashes. Rin dashed over to Bouquet, who was desperately dodging the alpha. Her clothes were torn and her leg and arm were bleeding. Worgen used Chain Lightning. The alpha shrieked and turned its attention to Rin. The alpha and Rin clashed swords.

"Bouquet!" Rin shouted. "Merge with Saber-Tiger!" Saber-Tiger and Marumaro were barely holding off the alpha attacking them. Marumaro's cape was torn, as well as his clothes. His right arm was bleeding badly.

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Bouquet replied as she and Hippo merged with Saber-Tiger.

"Thanks, maro!" Marumaro said. Saber- Tiger kicked the alpha into a rock, which shattered into a million pieces. They dodged an eye-beam from the alpha and attacked again. The alpha barely dodged a fireball from Saber-Tiger.

"Keep going!" Rin told them. In that instant that Rin was distracted, the alpha punched her in the mouth. She and Worgen crashed into a tree and Rin could taste the coppery taste of blood filling in her mouth. She spat out some before getting up again. The alpha lunged at her, its sword nipping Rin's shoulder as she dodged.

"Blitz Claw!" Marumaro shouted, taking out the alpha that was attacking him and Saber-Tiger. He turned and saw Rin. "Don't worry, maro! We're coming!" Saber-Tiger dashed into the alpha, knocking it over. Rin and Worgen finished it off with Slicing Wind.

"Glad that's over, now," Rin grunted. She looked around. Shu and Kluke were getting up with difficulty. Jiro and Andropov remained unconscious, blood forming around them. Kluke dashed over to Andropov, stumbling once and fell to her knees, crying. Shu went over to Jiro, shaking him and begging him to wake up.

"Andropov!" Kluke cried. "Please wake up! ANDROPOV!"

"Jiro!" Shu exclaimed. "You need to get up! You can't die!" Tears fell from Shu's eyes.

"We need to get these two to safety!" Rin instructed. "Kluke, teleport us to the nearest town!"

"Ugh. . ." Kluke groaned, "I'll try." She summoned Phoenix, Phoenix's wing was still torn, feather's dropping from it. "Phoenix, teleport!"

"I can't teleport us that far, Kluke," Phoenix told her. " We lost too much energy."

"We just need to get to the nearest town!" Kluke exclaimed.

"I'll try," Phoenix replied before spreading out her wings. All seven Shadow Wielders were enveloped in a white light before vanishing.

* * *

**Well, I like how this story's going so far! Keep looking for more updates!**


	18. Chapter 18

"Now line up to get your injuries treated," Rin said. They were at the ruins of a town. The group was staying in the least damaged building that they could find. Jiro and Andropov still wouldn't wake up. They were still bleeding, with Jiro being the worst. Andropov's wound was starting to stop bleeding as Kluke bandaged him up. He groaned as she did it, assuring Kluke that he was still alive. For Jiro, the sword hadn't hit anything important, but the blood flow didn't seem like it would stop anytime soon.

"It's all my fault this happened to Jiro!" Bouquet cried out.

"It's not your fault," Rin told her, "if Jiro didn't protect you, you'd be in the same state he's in, or worse."

"But he shouldn't have done that!" Bouquet replied, tears spilling uncontrollably.

"Y-you'd be. . .dead if. . .I. . .hadn't," a voice muttered. Bouquet stopped crying immediately. Jiro's eyes were partially open, his gaze on Bouquet. He went into a coughing fit, blood coming out of his mouth. He groaned in pain.

"J-Jiro. . ." Bouquet whispered before crying again, "I'm so sorry this happened to you! If only I had been stronger!"

"S-stop. . .blaming yourself," Jiro told her. "I-I knew. . .what I. . .was. . .doing. . ." Jiro trailed off at the last word before sinking into unconsciousness again. Rin put a hand on Bouquet's shoulder, but Bouquet brushed it off and ran crying outside.

"Bouquet. . ." Shu said, concern in his face.

"Just let her. . . handle this on her own," the voice of Andropov grunted. Everyone turned in surprise.

"How long were you awake?" Kluke asked him, relief in her eyes.

"Long enough. . . to hear what Jiro told her," Andropov replied, groaning at the pain in his side. "Are you okay, Kluke?"

"I'm fine, Andropov," she told him.

"Good. I thought that when the alpha took you down. . .that you were. . ." Andropov trailed off, closing his eyes, tears forming at the edges. Kluke hugged him and his tears fell. Rin looked over at Jiro.

"I don't really know if Jiro will survive, though," Rin said. The others looked up at her in surprise.

"How could you say that? !" Shu shouted at her. "Jiro will pull through! He can't die now!"

"Just. . .shut up!" Rin suddenly said, tears spilling down her cheeks. "I. . . I just don't know anymore!" Rin ran out of the house, leaving the others baffled at her sudden outburst.

Night fell and Bouquet had already returned. She was calmed down now. Rin wasn't back, though, and Shu went out to look for her. He found her sitting on a piece of rubble. She was hugging her knees to her chest with her head in them. As Shu got closer, he could hear her sobbing. He reached out a hand and rested it on her shoulder. She flinched and raised her head, looking at Shu. Her eyes were bright red from hours of crying.

"Shu. . ." she murmured.

"Are you okay?" Shu asked her. Rin wiped away the tears that fell.

"It's just. . ." Rin said, "seeing Jiro that way reminds me of my brother. It reminds me of how he looked when he died." Rin started to cry again. "I. . . I just can't lose someone again! !"

"Rin, you need to pull yourself together!" Shu said. Rin looked up again, shocked by his tone. "If you start wasting your time crying like this, then Jiro will die!" Rin's eyes narrowed at Shu, and for a moment, Shu thought that she was going to attack him, but then she relaxed.

"You're right, Shu," Rin said, standing up. "I can't afford to waste time when Jiro needs me the most!" Shu nodded and smiled. Rin smiled as well.

"Let's go back, then," Shu said. They went back to the ruins of the house, the others already waiting for them. Rin went over to Jiro and crouched down.

"Kluke! Hand me more bandages!" Rin instructed. Kluke nodded and went into Rin's pack, pulling out a roll of bandages. Rin removed the blood-soaked ones and wrapped the new ones on him. The bandages instantly began turning scarlet, but Rin kept on working.

If I can save anyone, Rin thought, it's going to be Jiro!


	19. Chapter 19

The next morning, Rin checked on Jiro. His wound had stopped bleeding at last. His condition slowly began to improve, but Rin was still unsure if he would live through this. When she had healed him before, it wasn't a problem because his wounds weren't too deep. However, this one went all the way through his body, and she wasn't too sure she would be able to heal it.

Everyone else began to stir. Shu sat up and rubbed his eyes.

"Morning already?" he muttered. He looked over at Rin. "How's Jiro doing?"

"Better," Rin replied. "But his injury is still life-threatening. I'm trying the best I can, but in the end he'll have to fight through this."

"I'm positive that he'll live!" Kluke said, her face serious. Rin just nodded, but she still looked unsure. Jiro moaned and slowly opened his eyes. Everyone turned their attention to him.

"Jiro," Rin said with relief in her eyes, "how are you feeling?"

"Ugh," Jiro groaned, "it feels like my body's on fire."

"Just relax, Jiro," Rin instructed him. "I'm going to try something out." Rin stood up and summoned Worgen.

"What do you need, Rin?" Worgen asked.

"Try using your magic to heal Jiro like you healed my brother's leg three years ago," Rin told her. Worgen gently placed a hand on Jiro's chest. Jiro grunted in pain as a blue aura surrounded Worgen's hand. It disappeared as Worgen took her hand off of Jiro.

"His wound's too great to heal," Worgen told Rin. "I'm only able to heal wounds where only the skin has been torn."

"Just try to heal it the best you can!" Rin ordered.

"Look, Rin, I don't think that…" Worgen started before Rin cut her off.

"Just do it!" Rin snapped. Worgen sighed and held her hand over Jiro's body. The blue aura that illuminated Worgen's hand spread to Jiro.

"It's not working!" Worgen exclaimed as Jiro cried out in pain. Rin just poured more power into the healing. The aura grew brighter and Jiro began to relax.

"How about now?" Rin asked.

"It's only healing a tiny bit," Worgen replied.

"We need to do it!" Rin said. Power erupted from her and the light from Worgen's hand filled the ruins of the house.

"We're getting somewhere!" Worgen announced. "The wound is starting to slowly close!" Suddenly, the light vanished from Worgen's hand as Rin collapsed, sides heaving. Worgen vanished and Shu ran to her.

"Rin! Are you alright?" Shu asked. Rin slowly got up.

"Yeah," she responded, still panting, "I just used too much energy." She looked over at Jiro, who had already fallen unconscious again. "I think he's safe, now." Kluke put a hand to her chest, sighing with relief.

"When do you think he'll be fully healed?" Andropov asked.

"With this healing every day, one week tops," Rin replied. "Tomorrow, we'll head out again. I'll carry Jiro and we can go to the nearest town."

"So when so we eat, maro?" Marumaro asked, rubbing his stomach.

"Just try finding something," Rin told him bluntly. Marumaro moaned and went out.

"I'll go and find water," Bouquet said and went outside.

"I'll keep watch for any more shadowlings," Kluke said.

"I'll help you," Andropov told her.

"No you won't," Rin said. "You're still too weak from your injuries. Shu, you go with Kluke instead."

"Got it!" Shu replied and he and Kluke went outside.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Andropov asked.

"Just lay down and rest," Rin told him. Andropov reluctantly did as he was told. Rin went back to treating Jiro.

* * *

"So, you guys are attacking me again, huh?" Delphinium asked as she was stopped by two alphas. They growled and prepared to attack. Delphinium summoned Chimera and Hydra.

The alphas leapt at Delphinium. Chimera and Hydra each held off one, knocking them to the ground. Before they could get up, Chimera threw a Graviton Ball while each of Hydra's heads shot out energy beams from their mouths at the alphas. Both alphas were hit. Their chest plates were destroyed, with other pieces of armor flaking off. One slashed at Delphinium. Delphinium dodged but the other quickly went behind her and prepared to strike her down. Delphinium barely dodged the blow, the alpha's sword cutting off some of her hair. Delphinium sunk her sword into the chest to the alpha. It screamed and vanished.

"That just leaves you, then," Delphinium said turning to the other alpha.

"Just you! Just you!" Deathroy said. The alpha took up a defensive stance as Chimera and Hydra attacked. The alpha was sent into a tree. Hydra shot energy beams at the alpha. The alpha held its sword so the blast bounced off of it and hit Hydra. Delphinium grasped her shoulder when the pain was transferred. Chimera flew up and came down, holding its hands in a fist and bringing it down on the alpha's head. The alpha dissipated under the attack. Chimera and Hydra vanished. Delphinium continued to walk on. Logi's battleship was stationed past the upcoming town. She smiled as revenge would soon be hers.


	20. Chapter 20

Morning came at last and Rin and the others set out towards the ruins that Rin was intending to go to.

"Now, these ruins should provide the answers we need," Rin told the others. Once inside the ruins, Rin went over to a painting. The painting was of a giant, shadowy creature. Its golden beak was open in a roar. Its black wings were spread out wide. Its arms were outstretched, showing each white claw.

"This is Shade," Rin explained.

"Looks kinda scary," Bouquet said.

"So you think these ruins might tell you how to seal away Shade?" Kluke asked.

"That's right," Rin replied. She placed her hand on a gem on the wall, which glowed before separating the wall. Going inside, they went down into large room. At the end showed a painting of Worgen fighting Shade.

"What… is this?" Jiro grunted. Shu was carrying him.

"This portrays the battle between my ancestor and Shade," Rin explained. She went over to the painting. At the bottom was the same writing as in the book that Rin found. Rin bent over to read it. She gasped at a certain section.

"What is it, maro?" Marumaro asked.

"It says. . . that Shade intended to merge with the Darkness to rule the world," Rin replied.

"WHAT? !" the other exclaimed.

"But how? !" Shu asked, frantic. "How can he merge? !"

"All he has to do is go to the Sealed Grounds and break the seal," Rin explained.

"But why hasn't he done this already?" Kluke asked.

"Because I can stop him," Rin explained. "It says that he can be sealed once preparing to merge with the Darkness. It also says that a permanent seal can be made if the Seven Soldiers of Light seal it as well. He wants us dead so he can join with the Darkness risk-free."

"So that's why we're constantly attacked? !" Andropov exclaimed.

"Correct," Rin replied. "We need to find the other Soldiers of Light."

"One is Logi," Jiro told her. "But the other. . ."

"Who's the other?" Rin asked.

"It's. . . Deathroy," Jiro told her finally. "He needs Delphinium in order to summon Chimera." Rin's eyes suddenly blazed with anger.

"Why her? !" Rin demanded, punching the wall. "Why does it have to be her? !"

"Rin. . ." Jiro murmured. Rin calmed down a little.

"Can't we still have Chimera summoned without her?" Rin asked.

"Unfortunately, no," Shu responded. "She told us herself: Deathroy can only impart Chimera to others."

"We should team up with her and Logi," Jiro said. Rin lowered her gaze. She took a deep breath and looked up again.

"Fine!" she huffed. "But she dies as soon as we're done!" The others looked at each other with nervousness. "Let's go then."

* * *

"General, sir!" a soldier exclaimed to Logi. "Another intruder is onboard the ship!"

"Take it out!" Logi ordered. Suddenly, a large crash sounded from the lab. Logi rushed towards it. The scientist were on the ground, many of them breeding from different areas. A large creature had freed the one that the scientists were researching on. The larger looked over at Logi. It growled something to the smaller creature. The smaller one dashed out of the lab and flew out of the hole that the larger had made in the side of the ship. The larger one growled and drew out its sword. Logi summoned Odin.

The creature shot out an eye-beam at Odin, who blocked it with his spear. Logi lured the creature out of the lab into the hallway to keep the scientists safe. Soldiers came running through the hallway.

"Leave this one to me!" Logi told them. "Get the scientists to safety!"

"Yes sir!" The soldiers responded. Odin shot out an energy beam at the creature, creating a smokescreen so the soldiers could safely get inside the lab and get the scientists out. Once the smoke cleared, the creature spread out large wings and flew up to the ceiling. It sunk its sword into the ceiling, hitting electrical wires and causing sparks to leap out. Logi's eyes widened. The creature was attempting to crash the ship!

"Odin! Kill it!" Logi said. Odin swung a fist at the creature, which leapt out of the way easily, latching onto the wall and sinking its clawed hand into it. It ripped out several wires and threw them to the ground. The ship rumbled a bit.

"Logi, sir!" a voice shouted from a speaker. "We're losing control of the ship!" The creature went past Logi and Odin and into an engine room. Logi sped after it, with Odin shooting blasts of energy at the creature. Once inside an engine room, the intruder slashed apart the wires connecting the ship to the engine. The engine stopped and the ship shook.

"Gungnir Rising!" Logi shouted as Odin shot a powerful energy beam at the creature. The creature tried to dodge, but the blast tore away its armor.

"We're losing altitude, General Logi!" The pilot shouted through the speaker.

"Abandon ship!" Logi ordered. He ran out of the ship, Odin disappearing after shooting the creature. The creature flaked away, leaving wisps of smoke. Logi went into a room, where several crewmembers were loading into escape pods. Logi went into one. The pods were released. Logi saw the ship crash into a mountainside. He scowled at the explosion from the ship. He would have his revenge on those creatures!


	21. Chapter 21

"What was that? !" Shu exclaimed. He and the others saw an explosion at a mountainside.

"I think that was Logi's ship!" Jiro said.

"Wait, I think something came out of the ship!" Rin shouted.

"Escape pods?" Kluke guessed.

"Possibly," Rin replied. "Let's check it out!" Blue Dragon, Phoenix, Saber-Tiger, and Worgen were summoned.

"Let's go then!" Shu exclaimed. They flew towards the direction of the escape pod. They finally got to the spot where it landed. They noticed that there was more than one escape pod that landed. The group landed and hid in bushes, the Shadows disappearing. Peeking out, they saw several soldiers crawling out. They groaned in pain and struggled to get up. Rin saw a blond-haired man struggling to get out of one. He had a large scar on his left eye.

"There's Logi, maro!" Marumaro exclaimed, pointing at the man.

"So that's Logi, huh?" Rin said. "Let's go talk to him then."

"Hold up!" Jiro said. "He might think it as an attack!"

"I'll go out, first." Andropov said.

"Good idea," Kluke agreed. "He trusts you more than us." Andropov snuck out of the bushes. The soldiers didn't see him at first, but Logi saw him immediately.

"Andropov?" Logi asked.

"General Logi," Andropov said, "I-I need to talk to you." Logi got up and walked over to Andropov.

"Logi, sir!" a soldier said.

"Don't worry," Logi told him. "Make sure the others are alright."

"Yes sir!" the soldier replied and went over to the other soldiers.

"Now the rest of you may as well come out of there!" Logi called out. Rin, Shu, and the others walked out of the bushes.

"So you knew we were in there then?" Rin asked.

"I take it you're here to talk to me about the black creatures?" Logi guessed.

"How'd you know about them, maro?" Marumaro asked.

"Well, one took out our ship," Logi replied simply.

"Look here, Logi," Shu said, taking a step towards him, "we need to team up again to fight them."

"I understand what you're saying, but what makes you think we can't fight them on our own?" Logi replied, narrowing his eyes.

"Are you stupid? !" Shu exclaimed, hands going into fists. "One just took out your ship!"

"Let me handle this, Shu," Rin told Shu, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"And just who might you be?" Logi asked her.

"My name's Rin," she replied. "I'm a Shadow Wielder."

"Wait, so was that wolf-like Shadow that hit our ship yours?" Logi asked.

"Right," Rin answered. "Her name's Worgen. But onto the reason we need to team up: there's a creature out there by the name of Shade. He produces creatures identical to the creatures of the Darkness. They're called shadowlings. The best ones are called alphas."

"So I take it that you need my help to kill this Shade creature?" Logi asked.

"Yes. To create a permanent seal, I need the help of the Seven Soldiers of Light," Rin replied.

"Very well. I'll join you," Logi said. This took the others by surprise.

"You'll. . .help us?" Shu asked consciously.

"Well, yes," Logi replied matter-of-factly. "After all, I need my revenge."

"So that means that you'll also need me as well, then," a voice said. Everyone turned around to see Delphinium and Deathroy appear out of the bushes. Rin tensed, instinctively reaching for her sword. Jiro grabbed her arm.

"Remember, we need her," Jiro reminded Rin. Rin lowered her arm, still tense. Delphinium walked over to the group.

"So that's how it is, then?" Delphinium asked.

"Yes, that's right," Shu replied. "We need you again."

"And what makes you think I even care?" Delphinium asked with a smirk.

"I even care! I even care!" Deathroy said, putting his tiny hands on his hips.

"You don't care if the world's destroyed? !" Rin snapped. Delphinium looked at surprise at her. "It won't matter if you care or not if Shade destroys the world! !"

"I guess you have a point, there, little girl," Delphinium said, closing her eyes and shrugging. Rin gritted her teeth.

"So will you help us or not? !" Jiro demanded. Delphinium looked over at him.

"Well, Jiro, nice to see you again, though you look a little worse for wear," Delphinium smirked.

"What's your answer going to be, Delphinium?" Logi asked, impatience in his voice.

"I guess I'll tag along, then," Delphinium replied.

"Very well," Logi said. He turned to his injured soldiers, who were watching the whole scene. "Call for backup and return to the base!"

"Yes sir!" The soldiers replied.

"Let's go, then!" Shu said. The nine Shadow Wielders turned and headed out. Jiro caught Rin glaring at Delphinium. He sighed. He could guess that things would turn out badly between those two.


	22. Chapter 22

Jiro woke up to the sound of crying right next to him. He sat up. The group had set up camp in the forest. Logi and Delphinium slept away from the others. He turned his head. Rin was shivering and crying in her sleep. She tossed and turned violently.

"Don't die! Don't die!" she cried out. Her right hand went into a fist. Tears continued to spill out from the corners of her eyes. "Don. . .you can't be dead, brother!" Jiro instinctively wrapped his arm around her. She suddenly tensed. Jiro was about to draw his arm away, but Rin relaxed and stopped crying. Jiro lay down again, keeping his arm around Rin. His eyes grew heavy and he fell asleep.

* * *

"Jiro. . .Jiro, wake up!" a voice shouted in Jiro's ear. He felt a hand slap him across the face and his eyes flew open. Rin was crouched over him. It was morning and the others were starting to wake up.

"Ugh, Rin. . ." Jiro grumbled.

"We need to get moving," Rin told him.

"Right. . ." Jiro mumbled, still sleepy.

* * *

The group stopped after awhile at a town to get food and water.

"Jiro, can we talk?" Rin asked Jiro. Jiro nodded, though, he figured that this conversation would turn out the same way as their previous private conversation. When they found a place where they were alone, Rin turned to him.

"Jiro, having Delphinium around brings back memories, and their not good ones," Rin told him.

"You were yelling in your sleep last night," Jiro told her.

"It's just. . ." Rin started, dropping her gaze, "I just can't stand seeing my family die!"

"I know how you feel," Jiro told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I used to have dreams of the past."

"That's why I wanted to talk to only you about this!" Rin stated. Jiro blushed.

"Oh. . .uh. . .sure. . ." Jiro stammered. Rin chuckled.

"Sorry if this makes you uncomfortable," Rin apologized.

"I-it's okay," Jiro told her, still blushing.

"Well, I just wanted to inform you. . ." Rin started, her gaze darkening, ". . . that you will never see me getting along with that witch!"

"G-got it," Jiro stammered.

"Well, let's go back to the others, then," Rin replied.

* * *

After getting, back, the group ate and set out again. Jiro noticed that Rin continued to glare at Delphinium. Delphinium glanced over at Rin and smirked.

"You seem to hate me," Delphinium said. Rin didn't respond and continued to glare. Delphinium continued to smile and turned her gaze back to the road.

"Rin, try to calm down," Jiro told her. Rin relaxed.

"I can't believe that I'll have to teach her how to use Corporeal," Rin muttered.

"Corporeal?" Jiro asked.

"It's a special form your Shadow can take. However, it takes a great amount of power to sustain it, so it needs to be used as a last resort," Rin explained.

"So why do we need to learn it?" Jiro asked.

"Because with the way you guys are," Rin said, "Shade will kill you all easily."


	23. Chapter 23

"Now I'm going to teach you guys how to use Corporeal," Rin said to the others the next morning. They were in the plains. Worgen was already summoned. Rin began to power up. The aura that surrounded her was intense. Worgen shot up in the air and curled her body up in a defense-like position. Light burst from her and Worgen suddenly had legs and a tail. Her mane was longer, her body more slender. She landed right beside Rin. The other eight Shadow Wielders looked up at Worgen in amazement. Rin looked small compared to her Shadow.

"Wow!" Shu exclaimed.

"Corporeal offers your Shadow more mobility and far greater attack power," Rin explained. "However, it takes a lot of energy to sustain the form. Your Shadow will revert to normal once your energy has dropped to a certain point, so you want to save it for when you really need it." Worgen reverted to normal and crossed her arms with a smug look on her face.

"So how do we do it?" Kluke asked.

"Summon your Shadows first," Rin instructed. Blue Dragon, Minotaur, Phoenix, Saber-Tiger, Albiheim, Hippo, Odin, and Chimera were summoned as instructed.

"Just hurry up and explain already," Delphinium said, getting bored.

"Hurry up! Hurry up!" Deathroy mimicked, pointing at Rin. Rin glared at her but didn't kept quiet.

"Now in order to use Corporeal, you need to fight your own Shadow," Rin said.

"What do you mean by that, maro? !" Marumaro exclaimed.

"Yeah, how do we do that?" Bouquet asked.

"You need to separate the darker side from your Shadow and defeat it. When it's tamed, only then can you use the full powers of your Shadow," Rin explained.

"So do you care to explain how exactly we'll be able to do that?" Logi asked.

"Look deep inside your Shadow and pull out the darker side of it," Rin explained. "It's easier than it sounds, or for me at least."

"We might as well give it a try," Kluke said. Everyone closed there eyes and began to concentrate. Rin and Worgen observed them. After awhile, light began flashing from their Shadows. The Shadows writhed around in pain as the light intensified.

Blue Dragon, Minotaur, Saber-Tiger, Phoenix, Hippo, Odin, and Chimera all cried out as black forms of them separated and stood in front of the Shadow Wielders. Albiheim showed no sign of pain while its black copy came out.

"You guys will need to push your limits to defeat the Shadows!" Rin shouted.

"Right!" everyone else responded, except Delphinium, who just said 'whatever'.

"I thought we beat this guy back in the ruins," Blue Dragon snarled.

"It's not the same one; it's you!" Worgen snapped. The copies lunged forward, attacking their counterparts. The other Shadows quickly defended themselves from the onslaught.

"Don't concern yourselves with anyone else's Shadows; the copies will only attack the original!" Rin said. Blue Dragon used Crushing Nail, which was countered by the copy. The two Minotaurs clashed fists. Odin and the copy swung the spears at each other. Both Chimeras used Graviton Ball at each other, the attacks neutralizing each other. The Albiheims crosses crystals. Saber-Tiger and the copy each use Blitz Claw. Hippo and the dark version of him head butted each other. The Phoenixes used Eternal Breath.

"Our attacks aren't having any effect!" Jiro exclaimed after awhile.

"This'll go on forever!" Shu added.

"We can't give up!" Logi shouted.

"We need to get stronger, maro!" Marumaro agreed.

"That's right!" Kluke and Andropov said.

"Not like I want the world to end, after all," Delphinium smirked.

"Keep going! Use all of your power!" Rin shouted.

"RIGHT!" The others replied. The power intensified as they pushed themselves. Their own Shadows began to glow brightly and they flew upwards. All of them curled themselves up in a defensive position as light surrounded them. The light exploded and each of the Shadow Wielder's Shadows got legs.

Blue Dragon looked very much the same way as when he and Shu had merged. Minotaur's muscle size increased and his horns were larger. Saber-Tiger's mane and teeth were longer. Phoenix's hands disappeared from her wings as large arms equipped with deadly black claws appeared. Hippo's wings were much larger. Odin's armor was thicker. Chimera's feet were hooves and he had a lion's tail. Albiheim had two crystal legs with three pointed toes each. All of the Shadow's eyes had changed from red to emerald green. Each of the Shadow Wielders hopped on the backs of their Shadows.

"Let's go, Blue Dragon!" Shu shouted.

"You got it, Shu!" Blue Dragon replied. He flew high up. Shu jumped up. His hands were glowing and he slashed in the direction of the copy. Blue Dragon did the same thing. The energy wave cut the ground in an X shape, hitting the copy. Blue Dragon reared his head back, a giant orange energy ball forming in his mouth.

"It's over!" Shu shouted as Blue Dragon unleashed the energy ball at the copy. It left a huge crater. As Blue Dragon flew back down, Shu hopped off and Blue Dragon reverted to normal. The copy roared and merged with Blue Dragon again.

"My turn!" Jiro exclaimed. Minotaur slammed both fists in the ground and jumped up. Lightning formed in between Minotaur's horns. He shot it at the copy. Lightning bolts fired from all over at the copy. Minotaur landed with such force that the ground around him thrust upwards. Some impaled the copy. Light glowed from Minotaur's chest as more lightning rained down. The earth collapsed back to normal as Jiro hopped off Minotaur and Minotaur went back to normal. The defeated copy re-merged with Minotaur.

"Let's do it, maro!" Marumaro shouted. Saber-Tiger rushed out at the copy and slashed at it ferociously. Saber-Tiger hopped into the air and he and Marumaro front flipped into the ground, raising it up. Saber-Tiger roared and lightning bolts shot the copy. The ground settled back down and Saber-Tiger reverted. The copy merged with him again.

"Do it, Phoenix!" Kluke ordered. Phoenix hugged her wings close to her body as flames sprouted from them. Phoenix shot them open suddenly and let out a screech.

"Burn!" Kluke shouted as Phoenix flew down and swooped around the Phoenix's copy, leaving a trail of fire scorching the copy. Phoenix flew back up and charged more flames before flinging them at the opponent, causing fire to engulf it. Phoenix reverted and the copy merged.

"Go, Hippo!" Bouquet exclaimed cheerfully. Hippo used his large wings to fly up in the air.

"I've got an attack that'll do the trick!" Hippo told Bouquet. He opened his mouth and a yellow energy ball formed. He spat it out at the copy, the ball exploding. Hippo rammed into the copy and stomped rapidly on it, causing it to melt into the ground. Hippo reverted and the flattened copy merged with him as Hippo and Bouquet hugged each other happily.

"Let's do this, Odin!" Logi shouted.

"Right!" Odin replied. The end of his spear glowed brightly. A gigantic energy blast hit Odin's copy. Odin then slammed the butt of hid spear into the ground and beams of energy shot up all over, most of them hitting the copy. Odin pulled his spear out and thrust it through the copy before reverting. The copy cried out in agony and merged with Odin.

"This'll be a piece of cake!" Delphinium laughed.

"Piece of cake! Piece of cake!" Deathroy shouted. Chimera flew up high and came right down on top of his copy with his fist glowing brightly with power. He jumped backwards. Lightning and fire formed around him. He shot it at the nearly defeated copy and stomped one hoof, causing the ground to spike up in a straight line toward the enemy. Chimera reverted as the explosion took out the copy. The copy re-merged.

"Time for me to clean up!" Andropov exclaimed. Albiheim jumped up and angled his four hands so that blue beams met in the center, forming a giant crystal. Albiheim chucked it at the copy. When the crystal landed, more crystals shot up out of the ground around the giant one, impaling the copy. Albiheim shot out a green energy blast from his eye. The blast hit the crystal. This crystal absorbed the power, turning green, before exploding. Albiheim reverted and the copy merged with him.

"Good, job you guys!" Rin congratulated, gazing at everyone except Delphinium. Delphinium received a scowl from her and she and Deathroy laughed.

"No congrats for me?" Delphinium chuckled.

"For me? For me?" Deathroy said, still laughing.

"So that was Corporeal?" Logi asked as he and the others approached Rin and Worgen.

"Yes. The only way to defeat them is to use Corporeal. When your determination is strong enough, your Shadow will receive its true form," Rin replied.

"So you mean that the only way we could unlock that was by fighting those pushovers?" Minotaur asked, crossing his arms.

"Well, yeah," Rin replied.

"Why is it that it can only be unlocked by fighting ourselves?" Phoenix asked.

"The reason is because the light from your heart produces a Shadow. Corporeal is created from that Shadow," Worgen explained.

"What does THAT mean, maro?" Marumaro asked, scratching his head in confusion.

"It means that the strength emanating from your heart produces more Shadow," Rin said. "When the strength grows strong enough, the strongest Shadow is born. It takes the form of Corporeal. This Shadow works in conjunction with the darker side of the Shadow. When it's tamed, the power is yours."

"I really don't understand what that means, but at least we get more power!" Shu exclaimed.

"That's right," Jiro agreed, smiling.

"But don't get overconfident just because you guys can use Corporeal," Rin warned. "Shade is still unbelievably strong and we have to seal or defeat him before he decides to take his chances merging with the Darkness. If he succeeds, it game over for the whole world." The others nodded, new determination and power pushing them to fight the ultimate battle.

* * *

**Well, that's chapter 23! I decided to involve Corporeal in the story. Basically, Blue Dragon, Minotaur, Saber-Tiger, and Phoenix's Corporeal forms and attacks are very much the same as the Blue Dragon game on Xbox 360.**

**Please review. I had gotten pretty happy when I saw I had my first ever review. Turns out, I had forgotten to log out, so my brother played a prank on me by reviewing it. When I had confronted him about it, his excuse was: "I made a good review!" and I'm like "Doesn't matter! DON'T GO ON MY ACCOUNT YOU LITTLE BRAT! **

**Now I take better care to log out so my brother doesn't do any more damage. He's a pain in the neck every day. I'm sure those of you with younger siblings hate how they always get in your things and you feel like strangling them.**

**ANYWAY! Please review!**


	24. Chapter 24

Sorry for making you guys wait so long! Here's the next chapter! Also, thanks for reviewing, RedFire195065! I had thought it would be interesting to add Corporeal to the story!

* * *

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY LIVED? !" Shade screeched. The shadowlings cowered at Shade's sudden anger.

"W-well, master," one shadowling whimpered, "A-all of t-the alpha's w-were killed."

"HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN? ! HOW? !" Shade roared.

"They seem to be stronger than expected, master," another shadowling replied. Shade shot a glare at it and the shadowling instantly regretted saying those words, for Shade slammed his tail on top of it, killing it in an instant.

"Anyone else want to add anything?" Shade growled. All of the shadowlings yelped.

"That's what I thought."

"What are we going to do now?" an alpha asked.

"I'm going to head to the Sealed Grounds," Shade replied.

"B-but master," the alpha stammered, "what about the Shadow Wielders?"

"Hold them off while I absorb the Darkness," Shade growled.

"What if we can't?" another alpha asked.

"Then you and I will be sealed away for all eternity!" Shade roared. "Our attempts at killing them all failed, so we need to take drastic measures!"

"Yes master. . ." the alpha replied reluctantly.

"Every last one of you get ready to move! We're heading to the Sealed Grounds!" Shade ordered. He and the shadowlings began to head out of the dark forest and to the Sealed Grounds.

"Alright! Fight using Corporeal now!" Rin shouted. Shu and Jiro were sparring.

"Got it!" both boys replied. Blue Dragon and Minotaur each went into Corporeal form.

"Let's go, Blue Dragon!" Shu shouted.

"Now you're talking!" Blue Dragon eagerly replied. He flew down, preparing to slam a kick into Minotaur.

"Block it, Minotaur!" Jiro ordered. Minotaur put both hands up and grabbed Blue Dragon's foot, his hooves sinking into the ground from the force of the kick. Minotaur swung Blue Dragon around and threw him into a large rock, with Shu barely hanging on. Blue Dragon got back up in an instant and threw an orange energy ball at Minotaur. Minotaur put both arms up to block it, but he and Jiro were sent flying backwards. Blue Dragon dashed over to the two, throwing a punch that Minotaur barely dodged.

"Blue Explosion!" Shu shouted. Blue Dragon shot out a blue beam, more intense than usual.

"Conquer!" Jiro shouted. Minotaur shot out a giant lightning blast that hit Blue Explosion. Both attacks were neutralized. The two Shadows locked hands, each trying to push to other down. They broke the hand lock and each threw a punch at the other. Both punches hit the other square in the jaw. Shu and Jiro recoiled from the pain that was transferred to them. A white light enveloped both Shadows and they reverted to normal.

"Great fight, you two," Rin said.

"Seen better," Delphinium muttered.

"Why don't you make yourself useful for a change and see where we're heading," Rin spat. Delphinium glanced over at her and smiled.

"You sure seem to have it out for me," She smirked.

"Just hurry up and do it already!" Rin shouted. Her hands went into her fists. She stomped over to Delphinium. Shu and Jiro tackled Rin, pinning her down before things could get ugly.

"GET OFF OF ME, DAMNIT!" Rin demanded, struggling underneath the two boys.

"Calm down already!" Jiro said.

"We need her, remember?" Shu added. Rin stopped struggling and the two loosened their grip a little. Suddenly, Rin shot up, sending the two flying backwards. She turned to them, violet eyes blazing.

"Whoa!" Kluke exclaimed, grabbing onto Rin's left arm. "You do need to calm down a little!" Rin's glare rested on her, then relaxed.

"Whatever. . ." Rin mumbled. "Get up, you two." Shu and Jiro got up slowly, each rubbing their backs where they landed.

"Look, I'll go search ahead," Andropov said.

"At least sOMEone's willing," Rin said. Andropov summoned Albiheim. The Shadow sent out crystals. The crystals came back a moment later and rejoined Albiheim. The Shadow vanished.

"Looks like there's a town about two miles ahead," Andropov reported.

"Let's rest up there, then, maro!" Marumaro said. "I'm hungry!"

"Let's go, then," Logi said. Blue Dragon, Saber-Tiger, Phoenix, Worgen, Albiheim, and Chimera were summoned. Logi hopped on Albiheim with Andropov. All six Shadows flew onward.

As they passed over a dense forest, something caught Rin's eye. Dark Shapes seemed to pass between the trees. A large shape seemed to be crouching down as it moved on. She noted that the shapes headed in the direction of the Sealed Grounds.

"Hold up!" Rin shouted to the others. The others stopped, puzzled as to why she told them to halt.

"What's wrong?" Bouquet asked.

"Looks like Shade's on the move," Rin replied.

"We need to go after them!" Shu exclaimed.

"Agreed," Rin said. "Let's get something to eat at the town and head off to the Sealed Grounds!"

"Right!" the others replied.

Looks like the final battle is upon us, Rin thought as they flew onwards.


	25. Chapter 25

Thank you, RedFire for your comment. I'm glad you enjoy the story!

* * *

"Now remember guys," Rin said to the others as they flew off towards the Sealed Grounds, "don't do anything stupid or reckless." Jiro noticed she was glancing at him when she said that.

"I think we'll be fine," Delphinium said. "It's Jiro that I'd worry about."

"I think everyone knows that, Delphinium!" Jiro shouted.

"Sorry," Delphinium replied, not looking at all sorry, "I don't think any of us wants something bad to happen to you, Jiro dear."

"Did you just call him Jiro dear, maro?" Marumaro asked, stifling a laugh, but without success.

"That's right," Delphinium laughed. "If that's alright with you, Jiro dear."

"Jiro dear! Jiro dear!" Deathroy said, pointing and laughing at Jiro, whose cheeks were turning bright red.

"That IS a good nickname for you!" Shu snickered. Jiro shot Shu a glare.

"Why don't you shut the hell up? !" Jiro shouted.

"Why don't you ALL shut the hell up? !" Rin snapped. "You're giving me a goddamn headache here!"

"Yeah it is getting annoying," Kluke added. Nobody said another word until they got to the edge of the crater in the Sealed Grounds.

"Summon your Shadows!" Rin ordered. Everyone did as they were told.

"So where is he?" Logi asked.

"Probably nearby, just watching us," Rin replied, glaring down at the Sealed Grounds.

"I don't get why he doesn't just come out here and try to kill us himself," Delphinium commented, looking around.

"I don't know either," Rin said. "Maybe he has something in mind for us."

"Or maybe he's too chicken, maro!" Marumaro laughed.

"NOBODY SAYS THAT ABOUT OUR MASTER!" a voice shrieked. Everyone spun around to see twenty alphas and shadowlings leap out of nowhere and surround the nine Shadow Wielders.

"So Shade WAS expecting us, then," Rin smirked. She pulled out her sword as Worgen pulled out her staff.

"Hold them off as long as possible!" a voice boomed. Rin's face went cold. The Shadow Wielders simultaneously turned their heads to see Shade stomp out from between two large boulders. His sky blue gaze switched from the Shadow Wielders to the Sealed Grounds. As if on cue, hundreds of shadowlings and alphas rose out of the ground. A laugh spread throughout them. One was two times larger than the others. It raised its sword, pointing it at the Shadow Wielders.

"Kill them all!" it ordered. Half of the troops took flight. Several had bows and arrows. They took aim and fired.

"Hit the deck!" Rin exclaimed. The Shadow Wielders collapsed to the ground as dozens of arrows flew over their heads and killed some of the shadowlings behind them.

"Idiots!" an alpha hissed at the archers before turning its attention back to the Shadow Wielders.

"Fiery Tornado!" Rin shouted. Worgen thrust her staff above her head flames surrounded the Shadow Wielders and spun upwards into a twister. Any shadowling or alpha that leapt for an attack was engulfed in flames. The flames disappeared and more enemies went for an attack. Odin used his spear the slash at them while Blue Dragon, Minotaur, Saber-Tiger, and Chimera fought of some of the others.

"We're penned up here!" Kluke shouted.

"Clear a path to the Sealed Grounds!" Rin ordered. She turned to Bouquet and Hippo. "You two merge with Saber-Tiger."

"Got it!" Bouquet exclaimed. She and Hippo merged with Saber-Tiger.

"Now clear the way, Saber-Tiger!" Rin said.

"Right!" Saber-Tiger replied. He went on all fours, with Marumaro on his back, and shifted his weight to his haunches. Then he thrust himself forward, using Sonic Scissors, and cutting a way through the masses of shadowlings and alphas.

"Now go!" Rin shouted. She and the others ran as fast as they could through the path that was made, their Shadows killing any enemy that got in their way. Suddenly, the larger one shot an eye beam in their path, stopping the Shadow Wielder's in their tracks.

"This is as far as you go," the leader growled. The enemies around the Shadow Wielders backed away, but still encompassing them. They formed a black ring around the Shadow Wielders and the leader.

"I take it that you won't let us through to see your boss then?" Rin asked sarcastically.

"My name is Night," the leader snarled. "And I will kill you all here and now."

"I'd like to see you try!" Blue Dragon replied. Night pointed his sword at Blue Dragon.

"You with the big mouth," Night said, "will be the first to die."

"Bring it on!" Blue Dragon retorted. A purple beam shot out of the tip of the blade, hitting Blue Dragon in the chest.

"Don't underestimate me," Night said, taking a step towards the Shadow Wielders. Blue Dragon smirked.

"If that's all you've got, then this'll be a piece of cake!" he said.

"That's right!" Shu exclaimed. He powered up. A blue light filled Blue Dragons mouth as he prepared for Blue Explosion. In a blink of an eye, Night elbowed Blue Dragon, interrupting the attack and canceling it.

"He's so fast. . ." Saber-Tiger said.

"Let's do it, you guys!" Rin exclaimed.

"Right!" the others replied. Blue Explosion, Conquer, Eternal Breath, Gungnir Rising, Graviton Ball, Rock Weapon, Tempest, and Saber-Tiger's fireball attack were simultaneously launched out at Night. He smiled as a black shield enveloped him, absorbing the attacks.

"I wonder how you'll like it," they heard Night say. The shield turned white as the attacks were launched right back at the Shadows. All eight Shadow Wielders were sent flying backwards. Bouquet and Hippo separated from Saber-Tiger.

"Damnit. . ." Rin muttered as she got up.

"Looks like long-range attacks have no effect," Delphinium said.

"No effect! No effect!" Deathroy mimicked.

"Hand-to-hand, then?" Jiro asked.

"Worth a try," Rin replied. Worgen put her staff back in the straps on her back.

"I'm going to enjoy clawing that deadweight to pieces," Worgen said, a sinister smile on her face as she held up her black claws.

"Fools!" Night laughed. "Do you really think that'll work on me? !" A black shield appeared on Night's other arm and he held it out in front of him. Something caught Rin's eye. Or rather, something missing.

"Guys!" Rin said. "He's using the others for weapons and power!"

"So if the shadowlings and alphas ceased to exist. . ." Logi said.

". . .then Night will be completely defenseless," Shu finished.

"Alright, then!" Rin exclaimed. "Half will fight Night while the other half kills the other shadowlings!"

"Got it!" the others replied. Rin turned to Bouquet and Hippo, who were trying to figure out what they should do.

"Can you merge with any other Shadow besides Blue Dragon and Saber-Tiger?" She asked. Bouquet nodded. "Merge with Worgen, then!"

"Alright! Hippopon, Hippotama Transform!" Bouquet shouted as she transformed into a pink light sphere. Worgen crushed it. As the light descended on her, armor appeared on her body. Worgen was wearing blue full-body armor. Her claws were reinforced with steel. Legs appeared, as well as a bushy gray tail. Worgen shifted into a battle stance, her gaze locked on Night.

"Crushing Nail!" Shu shouted as Blue Dragon flew at Night, lashing the glowing blades at his armor. One was blocked with the shield while the other left a large break in the chest armor. Minotaur was using Waves of Rage and Saber-Tiger using Blitz Claw. Rin looked around and saw the others killing the shadowlings that surrounded them. Worgen lunged at Night. They needed to hurry! The fate of the world rested on them!


	26. Chapter 26

Claws glowing with power, Worgen slashed Night, tearing off pieces of his armor. He recoiled and swung his sword, which was blocked by Minotaur. Saber-Tiger flew in using Blitz Claw and knocking the sword out of Night's hand. An instant later, a new sword appeared in his hand.

"Hurry up already!" Rin shouted at the others, who were killing the shadowlings.

"We're going as fast as we can!" Delphinium snapped back.

"Well do it faster!" Rin retorted. She turned her attention back to the battle just as Night released an eye beam at Worgen. She dodged just in time and turned to face him again. However, Night had stopped moving. His body began to glow and grow bigger. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the alphas and shadowlings disappearing.

"What's going on?" Jiro asked. Night finished transforming once all the shadowlings were gone. Everyone stared in shock at Night. He resembled a black dragon. He glared down at everyone before breathing black flames at them.

"Run!" Rin ordered. Everyone hopped out of the way just as the flames engulfed the area where they were just standing. Minotaur and Blue Dragon threw punches at Night, but were swatted away like flies. He turned his attention to Rin and unleashed a large energy beam at her. She realized she didn't have enough time to evade it and she stared in shock as the attack drew closer.

Suddenly, someone grabbed her and pulled her out of the way just as the attack hit. The first thing that Rin identified from the person was the smell of flowers.

"Delphinium? !" Rin exclaimed. Delphinium got up after they landed.

"We can't have anyone dying now, can we?" Delphinium smirked.

"Can we? Can we?" Deathroy said. Rin managed a smile but her eyes widened when the spiky tail of Night headed right for them. Right before it hit, the tail began to evaporate.

"What? !" Rin exclaimed. Night smiled as the rest of him turned to smoke.

"Shade is complete," was all he said before vanishing entirely. Rin shot up and went to the edge of the crater and froze. Shade had broken the seal on the Darkness and had completely absorbed it. He turned to the Shadow Wielders, who gaped in awe. Shade's form had changed. Tentacle- like spines had grown out of his back. His neck had spikes. Horns grew out of his head. His eyes were a deep purple.

"Oh no. . ." Rin muttered as Shade let out a roar.

"What now? !" Kluke exclaimed.

"We fight!" Shu replied before heading down the crater.

"I agree," Jiro said. "We can just give up now." He followed Shu.

"Guess we go then," Rin said, a smile on her face. Everyone else nodded and went down. When they got to the bottom, Shade laughed.

"None of you can hope to defeat me now!" he laughed.

"Well, we may as well try!" Shu shouted as Blue Dragon went into Corporeal. Everyone else did the same.

"It ends now!" Rin shouted as Worgen lunged at Shade. Shade used his spines to block the punch.

"Waves of Rage!" Jiro shouted as Minotaur fiercely punched Shade. Shade swung his tail around, knocking Minotaur away. Shade roared and dark energy burst from the ground, hitting everyone and throwing them back.

"Damnit!" Rin swore as she and Worgen got back up.

"We can't give up now!" Shu shouted. Blue Dragon began to glow.

"What in the world. . ?" Logi muttered. Rin smiled and Worgen glowed.

"Pour all of your power into this one attack!" she shouted. Every other Shadow glowed with power and they flew upwards. They put their hands in front of them, a giant ball of light forming. Worgen roared and a gigantic energy blast was unleashed. Shade released one of his own, but was overpowered.

"No way!" He roared as the blast enveloped him.

"Did we do it, maro?" Marumaro asked. A ball of Darkness that floated in the air answered him. Rin stepped forward. Worgen held her staff up.

"Focus your power!" She shouted. Light surrounded the ball as the Shadow Wielders put forth their power. An instant later, the ball was gone. "It's over. . ."

* * *

At Nirvana, medals were given to the nine Shadow Wielders.

"Logi, would you be willing to join us?" Dr. Tarkovsky asked Logi.

"Hold on," Matilda interrupted. "We told you before that our answer is no."

"Just hold on a second, Matilda. I think it's time we joined them," Logi said.

"But sir. . ." Matilda started, but Logi silenced her.

"Very good, General Logi," Dr. Tarkovsky said, shaking hands with Logi.

Jiro and Rin were watching from a distance.

"So what now, Jiro?" Rin asked.

"I dunno," Jiro replied. "By the way Rin, I wanted to talk to you about something."

"What is it?" Rin asked.

"Remember our conversation in the forest?" Jiro said.

"Yes I do," Rin answered.

"Well I have my answer now," Jiro replied. "I do love you."

Rin smiled. "So do I. You can stay with me." She and Jiro headed for the doorway.

"What about Delphinium?" Jiro asked.

"I think I'll let her off the hook," Rin replied, casting a glance back at the lavender-haired woman talking with Dr. Tarkovsky. "She saved me after all."

"Yeah," Jiro said, smiling. He took one last look at his friends. Shu and the others were asking to join the White Guardians. Jiro turned back and followed Rin out of the castle doors.

* * *

**That was the last chapter! I'm SO SORRY it was crappy! I wanted to hurry and finish it so I could start on a season 4! Look out for Blue Dragon: Order of the Shadows! I promise it'll be better!**


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